WTO decides in Pakistan’s favour on export of chemical in making mineral water bottles

ISLAMABAD, Jul 7 (APP): The World Trade Organization (WTO) has decided
in Pakistan’s favour and held measures adopted by the European Commission on export
of PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate a chemical used in the making of mineral water
bottles) against WTO law and rules.
The WTO categorically ruled that measures applied by European
Commission on Pakistani PET were inconsistent with the Subsidies and Countervailing
Measures Agreement (SCM) of the WTO.
This is being seen as a big diplomatic success of Pakistan at the
multilateral forum in Geneva by trade experts. The report of the WTO adjudicating panel
was released in Geneva last evening.
The European Union way back in 2010 had imposed a crippling
countervailing duty on Pakistan’s PET. As per conservative estimates, the unfair trade
protection measures imposed by EU seven years ago, caused a loss of approximately
300 million Euros to Pakistan’s nascent chemical industry.
Pakistan had filed a case of unfair trade practices in March 2015,
against the 28-country European Commission.
International Trade Law experts have labelled it as a success of the
present government’s economic diplomacy, which will have far reaching effects in
protecting Pakistan’s exports globally.
The PET popularly also called Resin is a bottle-grade polyester chip,
which is used in production of disposable PET bottles for mineral water beverages.
Minister for Commerce, Engineer Khurram Dastgir Khan has appreciated
the efforts of the Ministry of Commerce officials who contested the case at the
international dispute forum over the last two years.
He hoped that the findings of the WTO panel will boost Pakistan’s
exports and also help the government ward off future trade restrictions being based on
similar trade remedy practices.